Titans vs. Patriots: Reasons for optimism and concern for Tennessee

Concern: Generating pressure

Whether or not the Patriots have struggled to throw the ball with consistency or if the Titans will get Adoree’ Jackson back, this is still Tom Brady and he can still pick apart a defense at will like he’s done for two decades now.

The name of the game remains the same: make Brady uncomfortable in the pocket and he’ll have a rough day.

Unfortunately for Tennessee, generating a consistent pass-rush outside of Harold Landry has been an issue this season, whether that be off the edge or up the middle. In fact, cornerback Logan Ryan has the third-most sacks on the team in 2019.

Cameron Wake is on IR, Kamalei Correa is more of a solid rotational player than anything else, and Derick Roberson, who has three sacks in two games, has been promising but has only seen 29 snaps in those two games and his sample size is too small for Tennessee to hang its hat on.

The interior of the Titans’ defensive line has a grand total of 9.5 sacks, five of which have come from Jurrell Casey. Isaiah Mack, who has 1.5 of those sacks, hasn’t notched one since Week 4 and was a healthy scratch the last three weeks.

There’s no doubt that Tennessee has had some games that has seen this team get great pressure, but there are also others where the pass-rush has been a no-show. Defensive coordinator Dean Pees has been a bit too conservative this season and he needs to find ways to get to Brady on a consistent basis.